Growing Careers in Food Systems and Forest Sciences
Thirty-six district students got a taste of what careers await them in the food and forestry industries.
JL Jackson and Salmon Arm students joined peers at AL Fortune secondary to learn more about two University of British Columbia faculties -Land and Food Systems and Forestry. A four-member team from Vancouver’s UBC campus came to the community for the day to outline what’s involved in their programs and organize activities for the students to try.
Students learned about the extensive specialities that both faculties possess. The list includes, but is not limited to, specializing in the following programs: nutrition or food sciences, dietetics, sustainable agriculture, animal biology, food economics, conservation, forest management, operations or sciences and wood products. The presenters also outlined the dozens of careers that exist within the fields with such degrees. The Grades 9-11 students also spent time learning about indigenous way of knowing and participated in a short discussion on the Nova Scotia/Mi’kmaq lobster fishery on how they would solve the conflict between Mi’kmaq’s constitutional rights to access the fishery while commercial fishers are limited to special openings and catch limits.
After lunch, the students were divided into two groups. One group did two activities with the Faculty of Land and Food Systems (LFS). The first one involved food testing. Students had to eat jello with their eyes closed to identify its flavour. LFS Student Recruitment Coordinator Ashley Jang says science has shown that “the colour of food provides your brain with a predetermined idea of how it will taste.” Some of the students did struggle with this taste with their eyes closed while others did not. The students also had a chance of making some ice cream by putting salt and ice into one bag and then placing that bag into another bag with cream and sugar. The student then had to shake the bag for seven-to-ten minutes to then get their ice cream to form. And yes, all of them ate the ice cream with some having sprinkles on them!
Students also had a chance to learn more about the forests that surround their communities. Halle Smith from UBC’s Forestry department brought in cones, seeds, branches and wood slabs to have students identify some of the softwood trees that populate our area. Smith also informed students that, despite the current downturn in the BC forest industry, forest products like logs, lumber and value-added materials still remains the largest export item from BC. In fact, over 58% of the province’s exports fit into that category. Smith also outlined a long list of jobs needing to be filled in the industry requiring everything from no post-secondary education to Master Degrees in Forestry.
Another UBC Faculty will be coming to a school near you next week. UBC-O’s Faculty of Nursing will be doing presentations at AL Fortune on Monday, November 4th and Salmon Arm Secondary on Tuesday, November 5th. All grade 9-12 students can attend the one-hour presentation and bussing is provided. If you are interested in this event, wish to know about others or have a great idea for a career-based field trip, please get hold of the career coordinator at your neighbourhood school or contact George Richard at 778-824-1188 via text or phone or you can email grichard@sd83.bc.ca.